News: Wotso Opens The Doors To Its First Co-working Workspace In Malaysia

Mar 8, 2019

WOTSO WorkSpace is one of Australia’s largest flexible workspace providers, and it’s recently opened the doors to its first operations in Malaysia. The large facility offers co-working, hot desks, offices, meeting rooms and event space in Mercu Summer Suites.

This is a joint venture project between UEM Sunrise Berhad and WOTSO’s Australian parent, BlackWall Limited, a property development and funds management company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.

WOTSO, which aims to drive innovation economy, flexibility and day-to-day convenience thereby offering a creative and exciting working environment, serves individuals and corporates. Their customers range from freelancers, start-ups, small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as large multinational organisations.

Located right in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, it’s only a few minutes’ walk from KLCC, Dang Wangi LRT and Bukit Nanas Monorail stations.

“The public’s understanding of WOTSO’s business, and businesses like it, has grown since we commenced operations in Australia 4 years ago” said BlackWall Limited Chief Executive Officer Stuart Brown. “Concepts like “collaborative workspace”, “flexible office space” and “office as a service” are all now well understood by the market.”

The co-working market has grown significantly over the past 5 years. “Lately we are seeing global operators growing significantly by over-committing to conventional lease arrangements and high-end fit out, particularly in the CBD of capital cities. It seems the justification for this is to chase scale or network regardless of profit,” said Brown.

“We have a feeling that this style of business will prove to be unsustainable when the hype subsides. We hope to be in a position to take advantage of the modification if it comes. In the meantime, we will continue to grow through the organic expansion of our sustainable financial model and leverage from our association with a reputable brand like UEM Sunrise that embodies the same vision in creativity and innovation.”

UEM Sunrise Chief Marketing Officer Kenny Wong also added that the symbiotic partnership is aligned with UEM Sunrise’s vision, ‘Building communities of the future with you and for you’.

“We are always mindful of designing sustainable environments that nurtures community building which includes investments in technology, entrepreneurship and innovation. It’s very exciting to be one of the players in Malaysia that continuously adds value to the creative economy. Although the co-working concept is trending in Malaysia, it is still considered a new market with unlimited growth potential. We are confident that WOTSO, being one of the most established co-working space operators in Australia, will be able to provide unique and forward-thinking offerings with their experience and expertise.”

WOTSO is already benefitting from its association with UEM Sunrise. One of its first customers will be a project team which consists of 7 employees who will begin working from the space this week for 6 months, proving that WOTSO can be a solution to large corporates with short term or flexible space needs. The 14,000 sq ft hub is large enough to accommodate over 220 members.

WOTSO has a network of 13 locations in Australia and through its “passport programme”, WOTSO members are entitled to work from any location at any time. The passport applies to members from Australia travelling to Malaysia and vice versa.

It prides itself to be beyond sharing infrastructure and cost, but belonging to a community, accessibility and sustainability. Unlike the majority of co-working operators, WOTSO does not lock its clients into long term contracts. Instead, it gives flexibility with all offerings available by the day, week or month.